


Unthinkable

by StarryTreks



Category: Star Wars, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015), Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi
Genre: F/M, General Hux - Freeform, Kylo Ren - Freeform, Multi, Snoke - Freeform, star wars tfa - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-24
Updated: 2018-01-30
Packaged: 2018-06-02 18:12:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 19,181
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6577114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StarryTreks/pseuds/StarryTreks
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the destruction of Star Killer Base and Rey's departure to Ahch-To to train with Luke, General Organa sends a spy to a hostile moon called Mulosko on the Outer Rim where the largest militarized remnant of the First Order appears to be preparing for a counterstrike. Leia has charged the spy with returning her son Kylo Ren to her- at any cost.</p><p>Update: This story is incomplete, but I will not be updating it anymore- please skip to Chapter 9 for more details.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Day One

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! This is my first one shot on ao3! Woo- so before you ask, I have no idea where the hell I came up with this plot even though the premise is pretty cliche. This fic is supposed to be strange, so be prepared for that! 
> 
> Reviews are much appreciated! Thanks so much, and I hope you enjoy the ride!
> 
> Edit: This is no longer a one-shot!
> 
> 1/12/2017  
> Edit: This fic was formerly titled "Dark Planet"

“QB-4, what is your status?” whispered Aleta Caldoran into her resistance- issued communicator, her back pressed against an outcropping of rock, tugging at the neck guard of her Stormtrooper uniform nervously.

Her droid was still aboard the x-wing which was five kilometers away concealed by a thick cover of coniferous trees. QB-4 beeped positively.

“Good. Standby,” The droid beeped something a little more ingratiating in response before going radio silent. “I guess this is it,” Aleta said quietly to herself sitting up a little straighter to relish the last few moments of freedom that remained and thought of her parents.  
They’d been among the casualties of the Hosnian Genocide. That’s what everyone was calling it now. It was part of the reason why she’d agreed to this mission in the first place.

Her personal goals aside, General Organa’s orders had been clear.  
"Bring my son home," She’d said before sending the young, inexperienced, spy to Mulosko. "He’ll put up a fight, but I know you can handle him. Be safe."

If Kylo Ren had killed his own father, how could General Organa expect her to succeed where he failed? Aleta was nobody to Kylo Ren. She knew that he wouldn’t hesitate to kill her if he found out she was with the Resistance. Maybe she could try knocking him out and dragging him back. That would be easier.

Putting on the Stormtrooper helmet which she’d taken from a fallen female trooper on Takodana- like the rest of the uniform she now wore, she marched towards the tall stone walls of the First Order monastery, crushing the pebble-sized communicator underfoot.

“Give your identification code,” a metallic hollow voice demanded once Aleta reached the gate. Their voice was layered with artificiality; machine blasters swiveled to aim at her from the top of the high stone wall for good measure.

“AX-4295,” she replied with a certainty she hoped was convincing.

“You were reported missing at the siege on Takodana, AX-4295.”

“Acknowledged,” she responded. “I’d like to be reconditioned.”

The scanners read the identification code on her breastplate and her physical stature.

It was uncanny- the similarities between she and AX-4295. Aleta had been with the Resistance squadron that had pushed the Order back on Takodana and was among those surveying the dead.

Had AX-4295’s helmet not been removed, Aleta would have kept walking, but the young trooper had taken it off likely moments before she died. In her right hand was a white box - in the left, her helmet. On her lap lay a Trooper that had been badly hurt; but before she could help them, a blast from a mortar shell had hit nearby, and fragments from it penetrated her body and killed her.

Regardless, they looked very much the same. AX-4295 had the same black hair, the same almond-shaped eyes, the same nose, and the girl even had freckles- just like Aleta.

They might have even been sisters... or clones.

Seeing the young woman dead disquieted her on a molecular level.

Aleta had staggered over to the girl and tried to wake her up- she couldn’t fathom why she’d done this, or why she started to cry, but she did.

“Enter,” the voice responded, jarring her out of her reverie. The stone gateway swung open to reveal a colossal structure built out of the mountainside. Red and black First Order flags and banners whipped in the deafening wind.

A few Stormtroopers were stationed outside, milling about. She pushed the doors of the monastery open and stepped into a cavernous hall which was decorated with a single First Order flag hanging on the wall like a grim tapestry. The foyer was swarmed with Stormtroopers, but one with a red pauldron on its shoulder holding a blaster approached her.

“Captain Phasma requests your presence, AX-4295.”

“Of course,” Aleta responded. The other Stormtrooper lead her into a narrow corridor and through a metallic sliding door where the chrome Captain Phasma was inspecting AX-4295’s biodata on a holoprojector.

Saluting, the other trooper made a snap exit. Aleta stood at attention.

“Your timing is less than satisfactory and more than a little suspicious, I won’t deny. A full two weeks?”

“I had a difficult time with the locals, ma’am.”

“Ah,” she drones. “I’m sure that was very difficult. Remove your helmet.”

Taking off her helmet, she held it under her arm. Captain Phasma seized her up- she can’t tell what sort of expression she’s wearing, but it was a safe bet that she didn’t trust her.

The entire mission was riding on a gamble, but she wouldn’t have it any other way.

“There is something in your eyes that’s different,” Captain Phasma says. “After you’re reconditioned, you will be reassigned until you are acclimated to life here.”

“Thank you, ma’am.”

Aleta had to stomach two hours of slanderous propaganda against the Republic and the Resistance, the destruction of Hosnian Prime, and the braggadocios claim that the First Order was the golden legacy of the old Empire. Many times, Aleta had to force back a laugh or a gasp or stop her fists from balling up too tightly- all under Captain Phasma’s watchful gaze.

Once it was over, Captain Phasma advised Aleta to return to AX-4295’s quarters to rest until her debriefing. Apparently, AX-4295 had been a competent doctor when she had been alive, so her quarters were near the intensive care ward.

Apart from a rudimentary understanding of how to attend to topical injuries, Aleta hadn’t an ounce of surgical medical expertise to speak of. It really was only a matter of time before she was found out.

En route to her quarters, Aleta nearly collided with another Stormtrooper. “AX-4295!” They exclaimed in surprise. Apologizing quickly, Aleta took note of the designation on their breastplate.

QB-4013.

“I thought you were dead,” their voice sounded feminine, but it was hard to tell.

“No,” Aleta answered awkwardly. “I’m not.”

A few Stormtroopers marched by, but after they were out of sight, QB-4013 hugged Aleta tightly. “I’m so glad you’re okay. I want to hear about everything tonight after dinner.”

“Sure,” Aleta said, her heart clenching.

This person thought their friend had miraculously escaped from Takodana… what would happen if they found out who she really was? She felt as if she was simultaneously dragging that Stormtrooper’s dead body around the monastery and wearing her skin. It felt horribly wrong, but she wasn’t here because General Organa needed her to exercise her moral code.

With heavy thoughts and grating conscience, Aleta spent the rest of the day alone in AX-4295′s quarters, her mind circling around the story of her “miraculous escape” which was, of course, only a cover. She’d been sent to Mulosko as a personal favor to General Organa with the sole purpose of returning her son to the Resistance base.

A son she hadn’t seen since he was a boy, a son that had killed his own father.

_Kylo Ren._

  
Did they really want someone as dangerous as that on base? He hated the Resistance- he would jump at the opportunity to find its location.  
These thoughts preoccupied her until a knock at the door jarred her out of an almost sleep. Jumping to her feet, Aleta donned AX-4295′s helmet quickly, just in time to look presentable for General Hux- about whom she’d been briefed at the Resistance base. He had been the one that ordered the destruction of Hosnian Prime and her sister satellites.

  
He was the one who'd given the order to destroy her homeworld.

  
Aleta had to remind herself to stay calm. Remember why you’re here.

  
The General was slender, pale, and red-haired with a sneering mouth predisposed to snide comments. She knew she could pummel him in a physical fight, and it took everything for her not to do just that.

  
With shaking hands, she saluted him, “General.”

  
“AX-4295, I’ve been informed of your miraculous return,” he said conversationally, but not without an underlying malice that reeked of suspicion. “I’d like to debrief you in my study.”

  
“Yes, sir,” Aleta said sweetly, an attempt to seem unassuming.

  
General Hux smiled motioning out the door with his hand as if to say ladies first. “You have nothing to fear if you have nothing to hide.”  
She followed General Hux to his study wordlessly. It wasn’t far from her own quarters, but it was far nicer; it was a small room with a beautiful view which was strategically organized. Yet another First Order flag hung proudly behind his desk.

  
Her fingers itched to tear it to shreds.

  
General Hux sat down behind his desk and flipped through a few pages inside a blood red file which was likely AX-4295’s. 

_Well, that was retro._

  
“Impressive,” he commented, whetting a thumb to flick through a few more pages.

  
“Thank you, sir.”

  
“Sit down,” the General said casually, glancing up at her. “I don’t bite. I would simply like to go over how you escaped Takodana and arrived here. We didn’t see your ship.” She sat down cautiously, all the while running through her cover story. “But I’d like you to tell it in reverse,” he said without looking at her. That was a tactic she’d expected for lie detection, so she was still prepared.

  
The story was simply this; she had woken up on Takodana surrounded by locals who’d tied her up, but she had escaped under cover of night while they were sleeping using a pocket knife to cut her binds. Quite wounded, she nursed herself to health in the woods using whatever remained from her first aid kit and squatted in a downed Resistance craft she found there. She repaired the ship until it was well enough to fly to Mulosko, but it disintegrated upon reentry. Her saving grace had been one of the ship’s parachutes which were luckily intact, but she had to walk a treacherous ten kilometers to return to the stronghold.

  
She went through the story twice- once backward, and once forwards.

  
General Hux seemed a little more convinced. “I see. It’s fortunate you’re adept at medicine. I’ll also need you to report to the med bay for a physical screening tomorrow- just to make sure you’re properly healed. Speaking of which, I’d like to give you your first assignment. I understand that Captain Phasma told you to take the rest of the day, but this patient can’t wait and I can’t get anyone else to take care of him.”

  
“Who is it?”

  
“Kylo Ren,” he answered, watching her see if the name warranted any reaction. She balled her fists. This was the perfect set up. If she could convince the man to come home, she could complete her mission.

  
“I-“

  
“There’s no one else,” General Hux said, almost pleadingly.

  
“Perhaps with good reason,” She answered, just to be difficult to avoid further suspicion.

  
“I don’t want to have to order you, AX-4295.” The General said, steepling his fingers together, “but I will.” She sighed and grudgingly agreed. “His wound must be checked twice a day; once in the morning, and once at night. He’s difficult, but you must insist. I can post a guard if you’d prefer.”  
She desperately wanted to take him up on his offer, but she needed to spend time with Kylo Ren without prying ears.

  
Aleta shook her head, “no, sir. Thank you, but I should be fine.”

  
The General nodded severely, “good. Report to his quarters in an hour.”

  
That’s how Aleta found herself standing outside of Kylo Ren’s quarters an hour later with a medical kit clenched in her hands. The corridor was empty. Her nerves grated on her like a bow on an out-of-tune mandolin, but before they could get the better of her, she knocked twice on the door.  
“Who is it?” A voice demanded; it was a man’s smooth petulant drawl unaided by a mask’s distortion microphone.

  
“Fresh bandages,” she answered.

  
“I don’t want them,” he replied shortly. “Go find other employment.”

  
“Look, I’m just trying to do my job. The General ordered me to change your bandages, I don’t really have a choice. Please open the door.”  
A moment later, the door slid open to reveal a hulking column of black; she has to crane her neck a little to meet his eyes- which are obscured under a black mask he’d likely just put on.

  
So that’s why nobody wanted to do this.

  
Feeling incredibly small even though she was only a few inches shorter than him, Aleta squared up under Kylo Ren’s scrutiny. “May I come in?”  
He didn’t answer for a moment, but he gave in and stepped aside just far enough for her to slide past him.

  
His quarters were dim; hand-written letters adorned the walls, and amalgamations of books littered the floor and his desk. Flickering candles of varying heights exuded the only light his room afforded.

  
The small space was permeated with the scent of something Aleta knew very well.

  
Fear.

  
The bad thing about fear is that it’s extremely contagious.The door slid shut with a finality Aleta didn’t like, and she whirled around to face the frightening man that towered over her.

No- he was more than that. He was General Organa’s frightened, angry son.

A man who’d killed his own father two weeks ago.

“You’re brave to storm into my quarters like this,” he said in a clipped voice which is distorted by the mask concealing his face. Aleta’s heart pounded as she opened the box on his bedside table.

“I am a Stormtrooper, you know.” Aleta joked, but her attempt at being cute fell embarrassingly flat in the silence. She cleared her throat and shook her head, “please take a seat.”

She rummaged through the medical kit instead of looking at him hoping it would curb the coiling fear in her gut.

It didn’t.

He did as she asked after a long pause, and his closeness made her shudder. 

“Where is the injury?” Inquired Aleta with as steady a voice as she could manage.

“Take off your helmet.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“Take off your helmet,” came his insistent response.

Of course, she had no choice. This man was a loose cannon, and she had no idea what might set him off. Playing safe was in her best interest if she wanted to keep her cover intact.

Taking her Stormtrooper helmet off, she placed it on the table and smoothed her hair into place, her placebo protection now gone. A long moment went by, and to her bewilderment, Kylo Ren released the neck guard of his own mask, and pulled it away… he looked like a younger and less rugged

Han Solo with a twisted ugly burn across his face.

She couldn’t stop her mouth from going slack, but the unhappiness and pain in his dark brown eyes shook her out of whatever stupor she’d thrown herself into. He discarded his cloak and pulls off layer after layer of black until he sat before her shirtless and injured. The wound on his side had been stitched numerous times by the looks of it, and yet it was still puckered and oozing and red. Avoiding the gag reflex, she swallowed hard and met his eyes.

“You’ve been pulling out your stitches. Why?”

“So I don’t forget how my father died,” he said mirthlessly, “a trophy.” Violence broiled inside of her, her fear temporarily forgotten. “You want to kill me, don’t you? I can feel it coming off of you in waves. That’s… new.”

He’s force sensitive; Aleta reminded herself chidingly. She had to be careful about letting her emotions run too freely around him. Averting his penetrating gaze, she returned her attention to the medical kit, picked up a pair of tweezers, and knelt down in front of him to remove the stitches that were still left.

“You’re being overly cautious,” said Kylo Ren easily. “Are you a spy?”

A cold sweat broke out behind her neck, but she did not speak until all of the old broken threads were gone. She cleaned his injury with antiseptic. “If I were, why would I be trying to help you?”

“Maybe you’re saving me for someone bigger,” Kylo Ren said thoughtfully, he didn’t even flinch when she sewed him up. He was used to it.

“Doesn’t it hurt?” asked Aleta, ignoring his comment which hit uncomfortably close to the mark.

“That’s sort of the point,” replied General Organa’s son dryly. It was no mystery where he got his sense of humor. 

“You don’t want it to heal.” Kylo Ren only looked down at her darkly. Bingo. He’s tormented not gloating. It doesn’t make sense, “I don’t get you.”

“You’re my doctor, not my therapist. Are you done?”

“Nearly,” she said, pressing a piece of gauze to his side and securing it with tape, “Okay, all set.” Aleta smiled, patting his arm gently the way her mother used to, he froze and his face darkened. 

A skittish fright filled her and she stammered out an apology. She’d touched him without thinking of course. Damn motor reflexes.

“You can leave.” Kylo Ren said stiffly after a brief heavy pause. Aleta pulled her hands away from him coloring a bright pink.

“Sorry,” she said again, jumping to her feet, and packing up her medical gear before she could get herself into any more trouble.

Just as she turned to leave, Kylo Ren cleared his throat, “aren’t you forgetting something?”

Aleta turns quickly in askance, her face still smarting. Kylo Ren’s mouth curved in a smirk that she’d seen on Han Solo many times. She’d never met him officially- more’s the pity.

What had she forgotten? She thought, trying to keep her pulse even. She was bad at concealing interior emotion. Thankfully, candlelight glanced off of something white and shining and she spotted AX-4295’s helmet still sitting on his nightstand. Was she asking to get found out?

She snatched it off the table and dropped it onto her head before stomping to the door.

Kylo Ren pulled a long-sleeved black shirt over his head, mussing his almost black hair. “Are you coming back?” He asked, smoothing his hair away from his face

“Yes,” she answered.

“Try a little harder to hide your intentions next time. You’re bad at it.”


	2. Day One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I was supposed to update this on Monday- I'm so sorry. Between working 10a-12a and a wedding this weekend, I've been super exhausted and have had little to no time to update. 
> 
> But here is the second chapter- enjoy!

Aleta was used to espionage, sabotage, and escape but she’d never had to bring someone back before. _Someone who could probably kill her with the snap of their fingers no less._

That night, dinner was served in a large mess hall. It was there that  _all_ the helmets came off. People spoke freely among themselves- well, as freely as a group of brainwashed people _could_ speak. It’s not like she could blame them entirely, though. 

On the contrary, she pitied them.

The more she saw, the more she realized that they were all human which was odd. She’d never seen such homogeneity in her life. It also didn’t help that Aleta didn’t know what QB-4013 looked or sounded like.

Scrutinizing the breastplate of every Stormtrooper in the cafeteria would have looked seriously suspicious. Instead, Aleta found a quiet corner and ate alone. The food, processed and served by a service droid, was either tasteless or disgusting.

_Where the hell was the meat?_ Thought Aleta, a little annoyed as she stabbed at the white gelatinous cube on her plate and stuffed it into her mouth. She was far too hungry to complain about something that couldn’t be helped.  

After dinner, Aleta found QB-4013 standing outside of her quarters with her back against the wall waiting for her. Her helmet was on, of course. She still wondered what her newfound friend looked like  

“Want to go on patrol with me?” The female Trooper asked cheerfully.

“Definitely,” Aleta responded, happy for the company. 

Fortunately, QB-4013 did most of the talking which helped Aleta understand daily routines, training regimens, and protocol missions. The otherwise friendly Stormtrooper expressed concern with The First Order’s retreat after the destruction of the Starkiller base. With the remnants of the Order dispersed across the galaxy, they’d begun to regroup and cull alliances with only a third of their former size. 

Snoke’s fury at this despairing set-back made everyone apprehensive.

“So, is Snoke actually here?” Aleta asked curiously as they walked along the soothingly quiet grounds.

QB-4013 nodded, “no one leave for Kylo Ren and his knights have seen him in the flesh.”

After they returned to the monastery aftera few hours of surveillance and QB-4013 regaling Aleta with questions about her escape from Takodana, they retired- each to their own quarters.

That night, Aleta’s dreams were plagued by the screams of Hosnians and the dead white faces of AX-4295 and her own parents. 

Memories of shouting and screaming as mortar shells fell from the sky forced her to jolt awake with a start. She threw off her blankets and breathed deeply, wiping at her tear-stained face.

It was going to be a long night.

The next morning, she woke to General Hux’s smooth berating voice over her private intercom reminding her of her reassignment duties. 

Nothing like sweet nothings from General Ginger to put her in an utterly foul mood. 

Regardless, she went to the cafeteria for two mugs of coffee before dragging her mostly dead body to Kylo Ren’s quarters with the medical kit slung across her chest. The fear of rubbing him the wrong way was still there, but she cared considerably less about it than she had yesterday.

_It was too damn early._

Knocking twice on his door, she grumbled in her most unenthusiastic voice; “room service.”

“I didn’t order any,” came the equally grumpy reply. She stuffed a mug under her helmet and took a long drink.

“I don’t want to be here any more than you want me to be here. I have to check on you.”

“I’m fine, thanks.”

“Open the door, Kylo Ren. I’m not in the mood.”

“ _You’re_ not in the mood? _I’m_ not in the mood.”

She rolled her eyes ignoring his comment, “General Hux’s orders. I have coffee for you.”

He sighed irritably and the door flew open moments later. Looking pissed, Kylo Ren took the mug she’d _just_ drank from before she could protest, and stood aside to let her in. His hair was disheveled and his black clothing was crumpled from sleep. She blanched,  _he looked like a normal guy._ It made her very uncomfortable- though she couldn't figure out why,"thank you, excuse me." 

She went right to his bedside table, set the other mug to the side, placed the medical kit down, and cracked it open.  Wordlessly, Kylo Ren sat down on the bed next to where she was, his hair still messy. Her cheeks were practically burning holes through her helmet, but she knew he wouldn't trust her if he didn't take the damn thing off. Resigned, she took off her helmet and set it aside, pausing to smooth out her hair, and fumbled a little with embarrassment. He pulled up his shirt a little so that she could change his bandages. His injury looked far better than it had the day before.

“Thank you for not messing up my stitches,” she smiled as packed her things up. Kylo Ren had been silent while she patched him up again, but she’d felt his eyes on her the entire time. He didn’t reply. “What’s wrong?”

“I heard you crying last night,” he said, matter-of-factly. "You were dreaming about Takodana. I saw it." 

A chill went through her. 

“I'm sorry if I kept you awake,” she said simply, trying to keep the waver out of her voice. "I'll be more careful in the future." 

 

"You need help," he said shaking his head, "we can make you forget with medication or you can learn to control how your trauma affects you through meditation. It's your choice." 

"I'd rather not take medicine," Aleta cringed. She trusted First Order memory altering tech just about as much as she trusted Master Snoke.

"Then I suppose I could teach you how to meditate. In time, the memories will fade- but you must first confront them." 

Aleta nodded and wondered if this was some of his old Jedi training rising to the surface. There might be hope yet for Kylo Ren. 

"Thank you. Truly," she said, bowing her head. "I'll leave you now." Putting her helmet on, she grabbed her medical kit and her nearly room-temp mug from the table.

"Try to get some rest today," Kylo Ren said, just as he reached for the mug on the nightstand, "I like you better when I can read you clearly." 

“Is that so?” Aleta responded wryly, putting a hand on her hip, "well, just so you know; I took a drink out of that before you snatched it from me.” She said, pointing at the mug from which he was currently drinking. Quickly, Kylo Ren took the cup away from his lips and cringed as she guffawed her way into the corridor, letting the door shut behind her- but not before she heard a muffled but petulant shout from the other side. 

_"I take it back!"_


	3. Day Two

When Aleta returned to her room, she found that she had a pending message waiting on her private intercom; Captain Phasma requested the presence of all personnel in the prayer hall. 

Peeking out into the corridor, Aleta saw many Troopers marching quickly in the same direction, so she tagged along- trying to adopt the same good form.

The prayer hall was a huge circular room with the tallest ceiling in the entire compound. Light streamed in through long crystalline windows and the air was heavy with incense, but neither Snoke nor Kylo Ren were there to meditate. It would have been hard to do that with three hundred or so Stormtroopers and fifty or sixty other military personnel present.

Captain Phasma stood on the dais with General Hux; two sides of the same wicked coin; the Merciless Matriarch and the Defiler.

“I’ve called you all here to discuss an opportunity for you to prove yourselves,” Captain Phasma said; “there is a lead on Luke Skywalker’s location.”

Whispers rose from every direction, and Aleta thought she might throw up. 

**_Oh, no._ **

“One of our hyper-drive detection buoys locked onto residue left from the Millennium Falcon’s hyper-drive trajectory in a distant star system. I want to send out a few scouts to investigate before we send the entire squadron.” She balled her hands into fists. “I don’t wish to lose any more of you.”

“Yes, Captain,” came the booming reply.

“AX-4295 and SF-3209, please report to the medical bay. Everyone else, stay behind to hear more about the mission.” Aleta’s heart clenched; she had to warn the Resistance about this development. There was a direct com link to the base in her x-wing, but until she could find an excuse to slip out, she had to play nice and follow orders.

Snapping quick salutes, Aleta and SF-3209 marched off to med bay to be examined. It felt like it took forever. SF-3209 was a man with a very stuffy nose and a wheezing cough, and the doctors were a little more concerned for him than they were for her which was perfectly understandable. 

_What if I’m not exactly the same as AX-4295?_ Thought Aleta nervously. Then, **s** he remembered  _her old rancor bite!_

_Shit._

“May I use the restroom?” Asked Aleta quietly, trying to keep the edge out of her voice.

“Of course, of course,” the doctor in charge said briskly, a little too preoccupied with her other patient.

Aleta took the opportunity to slip into the bathroom which was in a small alcove on the other side of the med bay. Inside was a sink, a vanity mirror, a toilet- and a glass vase with flowers in it. She closed the door and locked it behind her, flipped on the lights and the fan, picked up the vase, and dropped it onto the floor.

Over the sound of the fan, the extra noise didn’t raise any suspicion. She picked up a large piece of glass with a jagged edge and stood with her back towards the mirror. The bite was gnarled and white with age- settling deep into the back of her shoulder where her arm connected with the rest of her body. It had happened when she had first begun survival training with other new Resistance recruits. 

Had Poe Dameron not shot the thing with his blaster, she’d likely have been rancor chow.

Sucking in a deep breath, Aleta angled the jagged glass just over the bite and sunk it into the scar. It hurt, but the pain paled in comparison to getting slung around in a rabid rancor’s sharp, toothy maw. She was lucky she hadn’t lost her arm.

Once she’d gouged out the scar, she stopped the bleeding with a wad of toilet paper and carefully cleaned up the mess she’d made without cutting her hands on the glass.

Getting dressed was a lot harder than she thought it’d be, but she managed somehow. 

The doctor was checking SF-3209’s drip and jotted a few notes down on her clipboard when she returned. “How do you feel?” She asked him.

“Better, ma’am. Thank you.”

“I want you to rest for about an hour, and then I will ask General Hux to reassign you for the day.” The doctor turned to find Aleta sitting on the adjacent hospital bed; she wasn’t wearing Stormtrooper attire, but a white coat, a black blouse, and skirt. “Are you ready for your physical exam?” The doctor asked, looking down at her holoscreen.

“I have a quick injury to report,” said Aleta before she agreed. “I got it on Takodana, would you mind taking a look at it?”

“Why did you wait so long?” She asked, putting her hand on her hips. “You’re a doctor, you should know better!”

“Yes, but- I thought I could take care of it on my own- it’s just a little hard to do that, it’s on my back.”

“You really are as pig-headed as ever, aren’t you? Please disrobe, I’ll take a look at it.”

“Thank you,” Aleta said, stripping to her underwear and lying on her stomach on the hospital bed.

“How did you get this?” The doctor asked conversationally, cleaning the cut with a swab. “It looks pretty fresh.”

“I got hit by a stray piece of metal during the battle. I keep tearing it open- accidentally of course. I’m too active to let it heal very well.”

“Hm,” she droned. “It’s very deep, I may have to stitch it.”

“That’s fine,” Aleta responded, quickly. 

The sensation of getting stitched up was definitely not her favorite, but at least this doctor was competent. Once she was done, she instructed Aleta to stand so that she could commence the holoscan and updated AX-4295’s bio profile.

“Other than your injury, you’re perfectly healthy,” the doctor informed Aleta, handing her a bottle of pills. “Those should take the edge off the pain. You can retire to your quarters and I’ll tell General Hux not to put you on any difficult assignments for a few days.”

Aleta cringed- if she wasn’t assigned anywhere, she couldn’t get to the x-wing to warn Rey and Luke about the First Order Scouts. She had to figure something out on her own. 

“Thank you, doctor,” answered Aleta quickly, before dressing cautiously and slipping out of medbay.

Captain Phasma was confirming troopers for duty on the vast runway adjacent to the stronghold which was lined with TIE fighters and a larger transport vessel where five or six other Stormtroopers were already strapped in. Jogging over to her, she saluted. “I’d like to volunteer for this mission, Captain.”

Her chrome mask looked up from her tablet and swiped through her list of soldiers. “I appreciate your desire to serve AX-4295, but you’ve not been cleared for active duty yet due to a medical hold.”

_Damn._ She bit her lip, “I understand, ma’am.”

“I do have a less strenuous assignment for you if you wish; QB-4013 had perimeter duty this evening, but as she’ll be on the mission, she won’t be able to do it. You can cover her shift.”

_This could work to my advantage._ Aleta thought.

“Yes, Captain.” With a few flicks of her finger, Captain Phasma reassigned her from the “resting” indication right before the one notated “medical duty”- when she was expected to care for Kylo Ren.

Without another moment’s hesitation, she gave Captain Phasma a snappy salute and began QB-4013’s rotation. When no one appeared to be paying any attention, Aleta slipped out through the gate and started the rigorous five-kilometer hike to her cloaked x-wing. It was only made more difficult by her self-inflicted injury.

When Aleta stumbled into the cockpit, QB-4 started shrieking at her. Yanking off her helmet, the droid immediately stopped and whirred happily, spinning its head.

“I’m fine, I just need to send a transmission to the Resistance. Can you patch me through?” QB-4 beeped and whirred a few times, “I owe you one, buddy.” She sighed, picking up the receiver on her control panel.

“Aleta?” A voice crackled; even through the distortion, she could tell it was Finn.

“Finn! How are ya? I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but-”

“What’s going on?”

“The First Order sent scouts to track a hyper-drive trail from the Millennium Falcon to a distant star system; they think it’ll lead them to Luke Skywalker.”

“Oh no,” he whispered. “I’ll go and tell the General right now.”

“Good, but I have another question; can you patch me through to Rey? She needs to know.”

“R2 is the only one that will receive your signal so far out. I can get you through to him.”

“Thanks, Finn.”

“Hey, Aleta? Be careful out there,” Finn said before disconnecting. There were three long beeps before anyone received her.

“I think I got it- I had to re-route the - who is this?” A female voice demanded. It was Rey.

“My name is Aleta Caldoran, I’m with the Resistance. Finn patched me through- I have bad news.”

“What is it?”

“I’m currently undercover at the First Order base on Mulosko, and they think they’ve found your location. Did the Millennium Falcon leave the island sometime today?”

“Yes- Chewy just dropped off supplies- why...” she trailed off.

“They locked a trace on the hyperdrive with one of their patrol bouys- they’re on their way to you now. You and Luke need to get away from there.”

“How many?”

“Seven or so. They’re only scouts, they’ll send more.”

“What about Kylo Ren?”

“Not with them, actually, I haven’t seen him since this morning. I think he’s training with Snoke.”

“We can take the troops, but we’ll leave if it gets too dangerous,” Rey said. “Thank you for contacting us. I should go. I don’t want this line to be traced, either.”

“No,” Aleta agreed. “Are you sure you don’t want me to come and-”

“You’ll blow your cover if you’re on assignment. It must be pretty important if the General set you up for it. We’re Jedi, we’ll be fine.”

“Be safe?”

“Yeah, you too.”

They disconnected, and then QB-4 beeped at her.

“I know,” she sighed, looking up at the muddy gray sky. “Why don’t you come out of there? I’ll put you in the cockpit- you can recharge and stay out of the rain.” The droid seemed very happy to hear it, Aleta laughed. She hadn’t laughed unguarded in a very long time.

The return to the monastery was a quiet one, the gate let her in, and she checked her watch. QB-4013’s shift was nearly over, meaning that she had to help Kylo Ren again. A warm flush spread over her face, and she shook her head.

_It’s dumb. Don’t think about it._

The corridor occupied by Kylo Ren’s quarters was nearly deserted. She knocked twice. No response. Knocking more loudly this time, she pressed her ear to the door to listen for any movement.

_None._

Minutes drew on, and she started to wonder if he _had_  gone with the other troopers to find Rey and Luke after all... 

_Damn. Of course, he’d be the first person to-_

Suddenly the doors opened, but the doorway was empty- until she looked down; Kylo Ren was on the floor in a heap.

Panic set in and she rushed over and cradled him in her arms. The young man cringed when she touched him- and he looked flushed. He must have been training all day.

“Are you in pain?” Asked Aleta, her voice high with fear.

“I’m fi-”

“If you say fine, I’m going to add another bruise to your menagerie of injuries.”

He laughed, a little dazed- it seemed genuine enough. Something was _really_ wrong. "It was a rough day,” He whispered.

“That’s more like it,” she said gently. “How long have you been on the floor? Why didn’t you call-”

“I did. Ten times, but you never answered. Where were you? You were supposed to be resting today.”

She deserved that.

“I’m sorry- I ran patrol for QB-4013 earlier. I should have told you-”

A groan escaped his mouth as he tried to sit up, Aleta helped him carefully. His hair was a mess, but his eyes were as sharp as ever. Reaching up, Kylo Ren took off her helmet and looked at her for a minute before trying to stand up.

“Doesn’t matter. You’re here now, so-”

“I’ll help you, hold on-”

In a tangle of injured limbs, they stumbled over each other and landed with a thunk on his bed, their foreheads banging together.

“OW!” “Hey!” They rolled away from each other clutching their faces.

“What’s the deal?” Kylo Ren cried, rubbing his forehead.

“I didn’t _plan_ this, your legs are like twenty feet long,”muttered Aleta, sitting up. Kylo’s arm was covering his eyes. “Are you really okay? I was kidding about that, did I hurt-”

“No,” he said. “No more than I already am. Can we make this quick? I’d like to sleep for a while.”

“Of course,” she answered, he tried pulling off his shirt but she only got it halfway over his head before she intervened. Cauterized slashes from a lightsaber covered his upper body, including the injury from Chewy’s crossbow. Actually, that was the area Snoke seemed to have been gunning for. Anger roiled inside her brain like boiling water in a kettle.

_Snoke, you bastard._ Stalking over to her medical kit, she sat on his bed with one leg folded under her, and the other hanging off and started to disinfect his wounds.

“Respectfully, sir. What the hell is Snoke doing to you?”

“It’s a part of the training regimen,” he shrugged, getting to his elbows to make it easier for her to work. “Anyway, you aren’t my mother, so I don’t need you to get mad or what have you. It isn’t any of your concern.”  

_“You are my patient._ I have to look after your well-being, and if Snoke is going to use these horrible methods on you, I have a right to be angry.”

“It’s more than that I think,” he said, watching her with those dark eyes of his. If she wasn’t careful, she was going to fall right into them.

No matter how much Aleta hated to admit it, Kylo Ren was right; she definitely was starting to have very distracting feelings for him. He sensed them this morning, she was absolutely sure.

Clearing her throat, she shook her head and used a skin coolant spray to help soothe the burns. He let out a sigh of relief, and his eyes fluttered closed.

“Thank you,” he said.

“Sure,” she smiled. _If I made him like me, maybe it would be easier to convince him to come back._ She cringed at the thought and shook her head again. _Stupid._

After she’d repaired the stitches that had been singed by the saber fight, she helped him into more comfortable clothes and all the while, her face was uncomfortably warm.

“Why are you embarrassed?” He asked as she pulled a blue shirt over his head, “you’re not a teenager, are you?”

“No, I’m a bit older than that, sir. I’m twenty-five.”

“Oh,” an awkward quiet fell over the room. He cleared his throat, “I-”

“It’s okay,” she said soberly, “I look a lot younger than I am. Get some sleep. I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Yes,” he said with a nod, even though something told her that he didn’t want her to leave quite yet.

“I’ll be in my quarters, so if you need me, that’s where I’ll be.”

Aleta packed her kit, put on her helmet, and offered him a salute- her shoulder was starting to twinge. She had to get back to her room to tend to it before she tore the stitches.

“Are you in pain?” Kylo Ren asked her just as she was about to step out. The young woman paused at the threshold and looked back at him. General Organa’s son sat on the edge of his bed with his elbows propped on his thighs. “I felt it.”

“It’s just a scratch,” she told him.

“Liar,” he whispered, just as the doors hissed shut behind her.


	4. Day Five

Aleta resolved to stay away from Kylo Ren as much as humanly possible for the next few days. There was no way she could continue to deceive him if this continued, so she familiarized herself with the types of anesthesia the Order kept in medbay. The more quickly she did this, the better. 

Her meetings with Kylo Ren had become short and wordless but filled with a tension that made her feel as if it had been the right decision to avoid him. He was always a little too close, his eyes always lingered too long- but if she said she hadn’t liked it, she would have been lying. 

“You’ve been distant,” Ren said conversationally after only a day of this just as she was about to leave. “You have much on your mind. What’s wrong with you?” 

“My friend went on that mission, and I haven’t heard from her since,” she said. “I’m worried about her.” 

“Who?” 

“QB-4013,” Aleta replied. Kylo Ren crossed over to her and put a gentle hand on her shoulder.

“Come and sit with me. I’ll show you how to meditate,” he said guiding her to the floor easily. He sat down and crossed his legs, sitting straight; a posture he was no doubt used to. “Helmet off. Eyes closed. Cross your legs.” 

Aleta sighed and did as instructed- careful not to move too much. Her injury still hadn’t fully healed. She didn’t want to risk it. 

“You aren’t Force-sensitive, but I want you to try and find a quiet place in your mind. It’s a safe place. You can imagine the Abyss if that’s easiest.” 

“The beach,” she said, taking a deep breath. “Any beach. White sand as far as the eye can see- and water so clear you can see the sand beneath the surface...” 

Kylo Ren paused before he spoke, “good. Now, your breath must come from deep in your belly- I want you to breathe in and out as long as you can. Imagine that you can breathe fire.” 

Aleta did as instructed, and strangely, her mind began to drift; whether it was from lightheadedness or otherwise. It took her worries away. Strangely, she began to see the beach- as if it has magically materialized around her. The white sand was warm from the twin suns in the sky- one was at its zenith, and the other at it's setting. 

The setting sun turned the lavender sky a beautiful shade of magenta just on the horizon. Sunlight glanced off the clear pristine water making the surface ripples glitter like rainbow-colored gems. Below the water, schools of fish in silvers, golds, aquas, black, and oranges swirled. Aleta padded across the sand to watch them for a moment before a strange cawing sound made all of the fish disperse. Overhead, a  flock of strange alien birds soared through the sky. 

It was the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen in her life.

“Do you wish you were there? On that beach?” He asked her unexpectedly. Aleta nearly opened her eyes in surprise, but she nodded instead.

“Don’t we all wish we could go to our happy place?” She paused when she got no response. So it was _that_ kind of meditation. “Yes,” amended Aleta. 

“Are you alone?” 

“Yes,” she replied.

“Good. Now,” Kylo Ren said carefully. “This is where this technique gets a bit interesting. I want you to go to the first memory that comes to you. What is it?” 

The vision of the sunny beach was replaced by whirling shades of black and gray as she was thrown this way and that by the rancor that had given her the deep scar on her back right shoulder blade. 

“Survival training- two years ago,” Aleta said, too relaxed to lie. “A rancor attack.” 

“Is it attacking you?” 

“Yes,” responded Aleta. 

“How do you feel?” 

“Afraid. In pain.” 

“Let the memory take you further,” he said, matter-of-fact. “What comes next?” 

_ She could hear Poe’s shouts from below amidst her own screaming, but she was so disoriented at the time that she didn’t see him. The gash under her right shoulder blade began to ache deep in her bones. It took everything in her not to scream in agony as she relived the pain, “my comrade came to help me. He shot it.” Managed Aleta in a strained voice through clenched teeth. In the memory, her vision blackened.  _

_ When she came to, her head was buzzing, and her eyes felt so off-focus that she feltsqueamish. Aleta found herself on Poe’s back with her shoulder wrapped in his jacket to prevent her injury from further infection.  _

_“You got yourself into it, didn’t you?”_

_“I’m sorry,”_ she’d answered, beginning to doze off. _“I feel so cold and my head hurts-”_

_“No, no, no, you can’t close your eyes. Stay with me, kid. You’re bleeding out.”_

_“But I’m so tired- five minutes... just five-”_

“Why do you think you saw that memory first?” Asked Ren, genuinely curious just as her memory-self’s consciousness faded out. Poe had resuscitated her after that; it was a struggle to stay conscious. 

Poe had always been so self-assured, so easy-going... even though he’d weathered much in his thirty-some-odd years, he still managed to keep himself together and remain a bastion of hope and courage. She aspired to be like him in as many ways as she could. 

“Because he was the first person I felt... truly cared about me without having the desire to parade me around like a trophy,” she replied. “He had always been a hero to me- even before I’d ever met him.” A beat of silence followed, and she wondered if Kylo Ren was reading her again. 

“Go back to the beach,” he snapped.

Apparently, he hadn’t liked what he sensed. This time, unable to help herself, she opened her eyes a sliver to find Ren’s countenance far less composed than a meditation instructor’s countenance ought. She sighed and closed her eyes again. 

“Now, take me to the next memory.” 

The image of the beach faded again into a dimly lit kitchen but instead of the cry of seafowl, her father was yelling at her. She remembered the night she’d left home very well. Too well. “I’m home.” 

“Describe it,” he said, coldness creeping into his voice. 

“I’m arguing with my parents in the kitchen.” 

“How long ago was this?” He sounded conversational, but the undercurrent in his voice was skirting on distrustful.

“It was two years ago,” she said, her voice measured. 

“You were given leave time to see your _parents_?” 

“For my service, I was given leave to do whatever I wanted. It was likely not advisable to seek them out. Don’t worry, it didn’t end well,” lied Aleta... in part. 

“What happened?” 

“ _How could you throw away five years of studying at the Academy and a chance to run for senator of Hosnian Prime to fight alongside those murderers?” Her father had yelled at her that night. Dinner had gone quite cold, mother chewed slowly and quietly, pausing only to dab her mouth with her napkin to prevent herself from interjecting and encouraging more of her husband’s rage._

_ “At least they’re doing something!” Aleta protested, “the Senate remains at a constant stalemate because of conflicting interests. I can’t wait around for another twenty years before they decide to stop the First Order’s tyranny! By then, it’ll be too late and you know it.”  _

_ “Then go,” her mother said with an eerie calmness in her voice before her husband could shriek at Aleta again. “But if you join the Resistance, you’re dead to us. Don’t even bother coming back.”  _

_“Have it your way,” Aleta snarled, tearing her red leather jacket from the back of the barstool, and stormed to the door, grabbing her duffle bag from the coat rack. “Make sure you change the code on the door.”_

“We yelled at each other. They disinherited me; you know- same old, same old.” 

Ren said nothing in response but felt his large warm hand close around one of her cold ones- which she hadn’t realized had balled into white fists. 

“Breathe,” he said. Aleta breathed glumly, feeling her eyes go watery under her eyelids. 

“Do you ever dream about them?” He asked her. 

“All the time,” she whispered. After a moment of stuffy and nerve-grating silence, Aleta spoke again. “Can I go back to the beach now?” 

“I think you need to rest,” Kylo Ren said, giving her hand a squeeze. “Go back to your quarters- and tomorrow when you come back, I’ll try to reach out to your friend through the Force. With your help, of course.”

Aleta opened her eyes and read his face. He looked a little sullen, but earnest. Putting her other hand over his, she smiled. “Thank you.” 

Nodding, Kylo Ren helped her to her feet and handed her AX-4295’s helmet. “If you have any nightmares tonight,” he said. “Go to the beach.” 

Aleta bowed her head, resisting the urge to hug him and put on her helmet. Stammering out another thank you, the Hosnian woman scurried out of his room and into the corridor a respectable distance away before she started to cry. 

_Why was he being so kind to her? It made what she had to do so much more difficult._

Her visor was fogged up so much by her crying that she could hardly see where she was going when she decided to start moving again- making her collide (rather painfully as the collision jarred her shoulder) with another body. 

“Watch where you’re going!” They snapped- she recognized their voice immediately.

“Apologies, General Hux,” Aleta said, snapping herself into attention which hurt the snot out of her shoulder. 

“AX-4295,” he said, reading her breastplate- his tone did a curious 180, “you have been doing an excellent job caring for Ren. His injury is nearly healed.” 

“Thank you, sir,” she managed without sounding like she was gritting her teeth. The pain threatened to overhaul her voice altogether. When her visor cleared,  Aleta found General Hux looking at her slightly interested. This puzzled her to the nth. “Has there been any word on the squadron that was sent to investigate Luke Skywalker’s whereabouts, sir?” 

General Hux’s eyebrows raised in surprise and he let out a chuckle, “I suppose you weren’t there for that part of the briefing. The buoy was near the middle of the galaxy. Even in hyperdrive, it’ll take them about a week to reach it.” 

“Oh, I see,” Aleta muttered. 

“I did hear that you wanted to be there- despite your injury.” 

“Of course, sir.” 

General Hux smiled and amicably clapped a hand on her shoulder. Letting out a pained gasp, she cringed under the weight of his hand- her injury delivering a burning sting all the way down her spine. When he heard her hiss in pain, he pulled back quickly- his smile dissolving. “Your injury-”

“My shoulder, sorry sir. I should have said something-” 

“Nonsense,” he said, brushing off her apology. “You should be resting.” 

“I’m headed to my quarters now,” she assured him. “Good night, sir.” 

“Yes,” he said quickly, looking a little perturbed. “I didn’t cause you any further injury?” 

“No, sir. I’m fine,” insisted Aleta; she desperately wanted to get out of this conversation. 

“Would you like me to see you back to your quarters?” He offered. 

“I- n-no, that’s alright," she stammered, in surprise, coloring at his unexpected kindness, "though I do appreciate the offer, thank you.” Aleta saluted him - a little sloppily albeit because of her shoulder - and hurried away through the old stone corridor, leaving the General speechless as he watched her go. 

Once she was through the hard sliding metallic door of her quarters, Aleta lumbered tiredly over to her bed and keyed in an alarm for eight hours on the holopad she’d left laying atop her threadbare comforter. Carefully discarding her trooper garb, the woman collapsed with a pained sigh onto her bed and fell into a deep sleep.

That night, Aleta dreamt of the sea... and shadowy monsters with beady black eyes that prowled beneath. 


	5. Day Six Part I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry, I know this chapter is two weeks over due. It was extremely hard to write for whatever reason. I do hope you enjoy it anyways! xoxo

The next morning, Aleta found herself more well-rested but felt a little nervous going to Kylo Ren’s quarters. She didn’t even need to knock. The door opened before her fist could even make contact with metal. 

The dark-haired ex-Jedi loomed over her and looked both ways down the corridor before he pulled her inside by herleft wrist, closing the door behind them. 

“What the-”

“Shh!” He snapped. Kylo Ren’s room was utterly wrecked; it looked as if he were looking for something. Making a path to his bed through discarded books and old pieces of parchment marked with faded inky notes with his foot, he pulled her along behind him. 

“What’s going on?” Whispered Aleta when he pulled off her helmet and helped her sit down, confusion creasing her brow, “why is your room so messy?” 

“We need to do this quickly,” he said without answering her question about the state of his room. “My master doesn’t approve of this particular use of my abilities. I’ll be punished later but-” 

“Do what?” Aleta asked, her eyebrows raised.

“I want to do something to help you,” He said sincerely, his face so close that breath tickled her mouth. 

Wordlessly flushing, Aleta drew her shoulders in, “But, I haven’t done anything-” 

Kylo Ren sighed reaching forward to touch her cheek with his fingertips. They were cool against her face and, for some reason, she could not avert her eyes from his. It felt as if she were quantum locked in this space with no hope of escape.

“Close your eyes,” he murmured, his clean breath washing over her.

“More meditation?” She joked, gooseflesh prickling at the nape of her neck. 

“Close them,” he insisted, with a little of a smile in his voice.

She let out a puff of air before doing as he asked... all the while, her heart throttled painfully against her ribcage. Panic was beginning to sink in... _Is he going to kiss me?_

The thought brought her back to her school days. She’d remembered thinking the same thing right before she had her first kiss. Seventeen was a late age for first kisses it seemed as most of her classmates had already had theirs by then and it was no longer really that big a deal. The other girls talked about Aleta’s lack of interest in romance as if there were something seriously wrong with her. 

But there wasn’t. 

_ And didn’t they have anything better to talk about for that matter? Why had it been any of their business in the first place?  _

As most people would, Aleta grew quite tired of the giggling and whispering behind hands. It was ill-advised, but her first kiss had been with Ulian Mulacci. The stuck-up little nerf-herder's parents had owned some big investment firm back on Prime. Among the few things she remembered about him were that his nose was rather pointy and that his hair was the color of fresh hay and was very soft. Ulian’s kissing, however, was awkward and dishwasher-like. It was not an experience she wanted to repeat if she could help it. 

“I wanted to offer you a small gift,” Kylo Ren began. “For helping me heal and for... distracting me from my sins.” 

Aleta opened one eye, “Ren-” 

“I was looking for something last night after you left,” He said, putting his thumb over the eyelid of her open eye to close it. “It’s an old Jedi blessing against bad dreams.” 

“Jedi? But I thought-” 

He shushed her and placed his palm on her forehead, “I ask that the Force comfort thine sleeping mind and arm thee with a seal of aegis against disquieting dreams of thine own making. Lest they are a vision of prophecy from the Force, all malicious visions are forthwith banished.” His hand warmed on her forehead, and her eyes opened slowly once he’d finished. 

“I feel as if I’ve been thanking you a lot lately,” said Aleta sheepishly as he withdrew his hand. 

At this, Kylo Ren withdrew mentally- she could see it all over his face, “don’t thank me for something this trivial.” 

“But it’s not trivial. Not to me,” Aleta said, touching his cheek with her hand. Leave for the grisly red scar that slashed across his face, his skin was smooth. He flinched in surprise. “Does it hurt?” 

“No- I-” he let out a sigh, “it doesn’t.”  The scar had been Rey’s doing. Aleta hardly blamed her given the circumstance but there was far more to Kylo Ren than anyone, except for General Organa, could have possibly known. “Oh,” he said as if he just remembered something and pulled up his dark blue shirt a little. 

The injury from Chewy’s crossbow was almost entirely healed. A few of the stitches had even started to fall out. 

Smiling brightly at him in a way that made her feel extremely vulnerable (but in all honesty, she was too happy to conceal it), she laughed, “I think you’ll be right as rain by tomorrow.” 

Aleta opened her first aid kit, taking the stitch scissors in her right hand and began to snip at the stitches that remained. 

“You’ll be re-assigned?” He asked curiously. 

“I imagine so,” she agreed, removing the thread with a pair of tweezers and applying the bacta gel with a cotton swab. “Likely to the medical wing.” They fell into a comfortable but melancholic silence, “there,” said Aleta, once she finished dressing his injury, rubbing his arm. “If you need anything else, I’ll be around.”

“Is that a promise?” 

Surprised by his question and coloring a little, Aleta replied, “I promise. Reach me through the Force and I’ll come; no matter where you are.” This seemed to assuage him. 

The meager lighting in his room made all the planes of his face seem sharper. He looked very much like a beast than with his mane of black hair, his scar, and his darkened brow- but his eyes were hopeful. Her heart felt as if it were being squeezed. Closing the medical kit, she slid off his bed and got to her feet.

“I’ll see you tonight,” she told him, putting her helmet under her arm.

Kylo Ren stood and walked with her to the door, opening it. “Don’t do anything too strenuous with that injury. Maybe you ought to have it looked at before you go on active duty.” 

Without thinking, she reached up to his face, running her thumb down a section of the long scar before she leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. “I will,” she said, putting the helmet back on her head. Walked down the dawn-tinged musty corridor, Aleta Caldoran left a befuddled Kylo Ren in the doorway of his quarters. 

She had to move him tonight... whether she liked it or not.

* * *

With an hour before her patrol shift, she found herself headed to medbay. When she entered, the head doctor was hunched over a microscope in a glass partition just beyond the hospital beds. A large array of test tubes on a tray sat in front of her.

The woman seemed to be quite enraptured with her work, so Aleta quietly moved to the cabinet over the first bed to the left where they kept the sedatives, and grabbed a clear vial of Amphatase and put it into her medical kit. 

“AX-4295,” the head doctor said pleasantly, looking up from her project when she heard the cabinet door close. “Is there something you need?” 

“I’d like for you to look at my injury, doctor. If it’s not too much of an imposition,” Aleta sighed, rubbing her shoulder gently which was a little smarting, but otherwise numb at its edges. 

“Of course- go ahead and disrobe. I’ll give you something for the pain, too.” 

“Thank you,” Aleta sighed, setting her medical kit aside and shrugging off her gear, carefully stripping off her shirt, and she lay down on her stomach atop one of the beds.

Snipping off the bandage with a pair of scissors which the doctor had selected from the hospital bed tray, she removed the gauze and began to disinfect her old-made-new-again injury. 

“Ensure that you remind your commanding officer not to have you lift anything over ten pounds.” 

“I will,” Aleta said, “But, I wonder- is there any possibility that I could have a high dose of bacta treatment today? Just in case.” 

“It’s possible if you have a few open hours in your schedule for it.”

Aleta chuckled, “I’ll get back to you.”

“Just when I thought you were actually starting to take care of yourself again...” the doctor sighed, letting out a huff. “I’ll give you a little bacta boost to help you heal, but perhaps I'll set aside some time in your schedule this week for a bacta bath.” 

“Thank you- truly,” she smiled, even though she hoped to leave the compound that night, she appreciated the concern. After another pause, the doctor slipped two icy cold needles under her skin.

* * *

 Upon returning to her room feeling quite a bit better, Aleta checked her duty schedule on her holopad. Patrol duty again until lunch, and then hospital duty and patrol duty split until she had to care for Kylo Ren...

Then her private intercom pinged with an incoming message from General Hux. Letting out a sigh, she accepted it. 

“AX-4295,” the General said his voice smooth, but the reception crackling briefly, “I would like to discuss your reassignment this evening. Come to my quarters in standard officer’s dress if you would. I’ll have dinner prepared for us at nineteen hundred hours.” 

“Yes, sir.” 

“Good. Don’t be late,” he said abruptly, hanging up with a burst of static and a click. He was being strangely kind to her. Was it possible that he discovered her deception? Shaking her head, she slipped out of her room and hurried quickly to the front gate to begin patrol duty. 

The wind blustered around her as she stepped out into the open air; all she wanted to do was to tear the damn helmet off and take a deep breath. Marching over to a trooper with a red pauldron on their shoulder who happened to be standing with their back to her on the stairs, she circled around to face them completely and saluted them. 

“AX-4295 reporting,” she said. 

“You can take over for ZD-1223,” the trooper said (male by the sound of his voice). “He’s on the gateway.” He pointed briefly to a sentry standing atop the stone hewn gate with his back to her.

“Yes, sir,” Aleta said, trying to resist the urge to cringe. It was going to be difficult for her to get to her ship to program an escape trajectory if she was in the direct scope of the supervisor. Before, she had far more mobility.

Pushing open the old wooden door which lead to a tall spiraling staircase encased in grey stone leading up to the wall with her shoulder. Aleta climbed up, up, up in the stagnant cold. The brisk cold hit her at once when she emerged from the archway. ZD-1223 turned to her and marched the way she came, and clapped a hand on her uninjured shoulder. 

“Thanks, doc.” 

“You’re welcome,” she said. He quickly marched through the archway and out of sight. In his absence, Aleta was left to survey the unforgiving dangerous terrain of Mulosko but it was beautiful in its savagery. It was not long before she began to shiver from the cold. Looking out to the horizon, the murder of cumulus clouds appeared to be rolling in from the mountains filled Aleta with foreboding and dread.

* * *

Gathered in the cafeteria were maybe about half the troopers it had had when Aleta arrived six days ago, but those the remained talked among themselves quietly and nervously. She wondered if she could find out something from someone about the somber atmosphere- perhaps there was news from the scouting party. As she searched the cafeteria for a face that didn’t immediately sour or a gaze that didn’t avert from hers the moment she locked eyes with them, Aleta recognized  SF-3209. He had been the man with a nasty cold who had accompanied her to medbay on the day that Phasma called everyone in for the scouting mission. 

Hesitantly, she took her tray of questionably pale proteins and flavorless bread and sat down across the table from him. SF-3209 blinked at her with his pale green eyes, his orange hair stuck up a little from all angles- helmet hair. Aleta took off her helmet as well and gave him her most dazzling smile.

“Do you remember me?” 

“Of course. You and I were called into medbay together,” he said. “You’re the one they’re all talking about.” 

Aleta froze, her fork hovering over a gelatinous square-shaped chunk which appeared to be fried ever so slightly. “They?”

“The others. They’re saying that you returned from the Seige of Takodana half-dead only days ago. Some people saw Captain Phasma take you in for reconditioning, and then well...” he shuffled uncomfortably under Aleta’s interested eyes as she ate. “They’re saying that there is...” he paused and forced down the lump in his throat as Aleta took a drink of the leafy green liquid in the clear plastic bottle she’d been given by the service droids, “something going on between you and Kylo Ren- but it’s just what they’re saying!” 

Without time to recover, Aleta nearly choked on the liquid as she clapped a hand over her mouth. Concern wrinkled SF-3209’s brow, and he leaned over the table to pat her back with his hand. A strange quiet fell over the cafeteria as the coughing subsided and she regained her bearings.

“Why would people suspect that?” 

“Well,” he said. “You’ve been seen coming in and out of his quarters recently and he’s been a shade less _unpredictable_ ever since.” 

Aleta mopped at her mouth with a napkin, “I’m only there to help him recover from injuries he sustained on Starkiller base.” 

Strangely, the room seemed to deflate, the mood still somber. SF-3209 remained in wonderment, “but he’s so difficult to even _be_ around.” 

“There’s more to him than that- I think,” she smiled, before clearing her throat. “In any case,” Aleta went on, looking around the room. “Why is everyone so quiet? Did any news come back from the scouting party?” 

SF-3209 shook his head, “no news has been received yet, but the storms here are quite terrifying. This is your first one, isn’t it?” 

“It is,” she replied, an edge on her voice. 

“No one is allowed out of doors once the storm starts. We lost about twenty of our patrols to a particularly nasty one when we first arrived. The wind knocked them from the top of the gate,” he said, shivering.

"How long do these storms typically last?" 

"At least three days- but we've had them as long as two weeks before. They're so unpredictable. It's very hard to say." 

It was then that Aleta realized that escaping Mulosko would be more difficult than she thought. Perhaps, it might even be impossible but she had to succeed- or die trying. 


	6. Day Six Part II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [June 21, 2017]- Wow guys, I am so sorry for this ultra insanely late update. I did okay for a little while last year, but this year's been way busy. I've had to put down my fics to work on my novel (I'm applying to grad school later this year). I hope you enjoy this chapter! I'll try to be much better about getting these up in a more timely fashion if I can.

Perimeter duty had been canceled for the remainder of the day, and Aleta was re-assigned to medbay instead. She undoubtedly found herself under the ever watchful eye of Dr. Levistow who had her administer shots to sick officers and clean up medbay whenever she had a few moments to spare.

“How is that shoulder?” Dr. Levistow asked looking up from her computer as Aleta checked the inventory with a holopad in hand while updating the numbers that didn’t look quite right.

“Thanks to you, much better.”

“I’m glad to hear it,” she said conversationally. “It must have been hard for you out there on Takodana.”

“I’ve been through worse,” replied Aleta. The less she said, the less she’d have to remember her lies later.

Dr. Levistow went on, unfettered by Aleta’s short responses, “And this is your first storm, isn’t it?”

Aleta nodded.

“I must tell you that they are as bad as they all say." When the Doctor saw Aleta’s vacant expression, she added, “at least there will be no perimeter duty- and with it, an opportunity for you to rest. Hopefully, this will help your healing process.”

The other woman nodded, logging another drawer of medicine and stooped to pull out the next drawer.

“So what happens inside during these storms?”

The doctor shrugged, “mainly casual activities when you’re assigned perimeter duty, but going outside is highly discouraged. Your holoscreen should update soon.”

“And what about vessels traveling in and out of the atmosphere?”

The doctor peered at her curiously, and a little suspiciously, “Of course they’d have little chance. The storm would short out any craft- digital, analog, or otherwise. Why do you ask?”

“In case we’re attacked,” she responded, adding the appropriate edge to her voice. “I just wanted to make sure our boundaries were secure.”

The doctor’s face softened, “of course that would be a concern. Yes, it’s what makes this satellite so appealing to us- once a storm starts, it’s near impossible to get in or out.”

 _Snot!_ Aleta cursed inwardly, giving a brief nod and saying no more. Indecision clouded her thoughts; this might be her opportunity to leave the premises unnoticed, but what good was that if the storm made it impossible to escape? The longer she stayed, the more likely it was that she was going to be caught red-handed. There must have been a way to re-purpose the shields to redirect the electric interference.

It might have been just the chance Aleta was looking for. No matter how improbable the success rate. If she died trying, it would have been a comfort to her immortal soul and to the Resistance to know that she’d tried at all.

 

A window of free time remained between the end of her shift and the time she was required to dine with the general to set the gears in motion on her shoddily devised plan to smuggle Kylo Ren off of Mulosko. She didn’t even stop at her room before heading for the back exit. With less than three hours to hike twenty kilometers in torrential downpour, to give QB-4 orders to fly to HQ and land on the landing pad at 2000 hours and wait while she dragged Kylo Ren’s drugged hulking mass to the landing dock whilst likely fighting off goddess knows how many stormtroopers before stuffing one of the galaxy’s most dangerous men into the too-small cockpit of the x-wing- there was no time to spare.  

The hike was so much worse than she could have ever imagined. On more occasions than she cared to count, Aleta slipped on a slick rock, got her feet stuck in the mud, tripped over upturned tree roots, was blinded by rain, and was nearly taken off her feet by the driving wind. It was mad to be out of doors in this weather. Absolutely mad.

Perhaps she was a little mad herself.

The forest loomed overhead, and Aleta trudged on- gaining a well-needed respite from the rain.  Soon, the x-wing came into view and she marched as quickly as her stiff legs could carry her, and threw open the cockpit while she ripped off her helmet. QB-4 whirred and chirped cheerfully as Aleta laughed, placing a hand on the little droid’s processing unit.

“It’s good to see you, too buddy. Say, I think I’m going to need your help. Can you do me a favor?”

So Aleta explained her plan to QB-4 who didn’t interrupt with a whir or series of puzzled beeps. Not even once. Leave for at the end when the droid called her “a humanoid bundle of misfiring neuron receptors”, but then reluctantly agreed to help.

“Thanks, Queuebie. If all goes well, I’ll see you tonight,” she grinned, closing the hatch once more to keep her robotic friend out of the rain.  

Somehow, she managed to return to the compound through the same way in which she left. Out of fear of the storm, not many ventured out. Unfortunately, it had taken much longer to reach her ship than she made time for and at this point, she would be late to dinner with the General.

_Snot._

She hurried stealthily to her room finding the halls a bit more congested than usual. _Shit._

Her armor was glistening with rainwater, and she was the only one. She could only pray that no one reported her. 

When she finally returned to her room, she dried off her armor and hurried out the door quickly- nearly colliding with General Hux himself.

“Sir!” She blurted trying to step into an easy at-attention. “I was just on my way-”

He raised his hand- effectively cutting her off, “walk with me.” She pursed her lips at him under her helmet but nodded anyway.

“Doctor Levistow tells me that you have been healing quite well- given the fact that you have been on active duty since you arrived here.”

“Yes, sir,” Aleta replied.

“Excellent,” he said and then with an air of humor, he added, “and how are you finding the weather?”

“It’s treacherous,” She said, trying to sound as neutral as she could manage.

“A small price to pay for protection from intruders,” General Hux replied, almost as if he were correcting her.

“Just so,” she said airily.

“Just so,” he replied with a chuckle in his voice. He almost seemed… gentle and friendly instead of pretentious and awful. Aleta found herself at the door of his office again and he stood aside for her to enter. The general’s office was as immaculate. Everything was perfectly placed- not a hair out of line. It made her stomach turn.

He closed the door behind her. She hated it when people did that.

Forcing down a lump in her throat, her skin prickled as he swept past her to pass behind his desk and stood in front of the First Order banner hanging on the wall. Aleta paused for a moment of apprehension when he pulled the black and red fabric to the side like a curtain- revealing a simple entryway which was carved into the stone. He gestured with his head for her to follow him.

Without vocal protest, she did- even though her instincts were telling her to run. Run. Run away.

But logic silenced them; _run? And go where?_

 

The General’s living quarters were just as pristine as his office- it looked like someone scraped the inside of his quarters out of a Star Destroyer and stuffed it inside. A dining room table had been prepared and set with cutlery, flatware, and delicious looking food. Real food. Not the bantha fodder they served the Stormtrooper corp in the mess hall.

Upon seeing them emerge, a silver service droid in an apron approached them.  

“General, shall I take your guest to be changed?” It asked in a cheery helpful voice.

He nodded, turning to Aleta, “I’ve prepared a little something for you in the ‘fresher if you’ll follow D4-GO.”

Aleta opened her mouth to respond, but she couldn't reject his hospitality without making him suspect her of something.

“Yes, sir.”

The ‘fresher was about two times larger than the one in her quarters, and the moment the door closed, she spotted a long powder blue dress. Aleta’s eyes widened- her lips curled back in disgust. She'd always hated dresses- especially the types that made her look like a politician's wife- much like she knew this one would.

The droid turned on her, it’s arms bent at an angle.

“Please let me assist you in removing your uniform,” the droid said, hobbling over to Aleta, hands outstretched.

“Oh, no- I’m fine,” Aleta insisted masking her facial expression neutral again as she removed her helmet. The droid took the headwear from her and set it on a stone table which was decorated with a simple vase of flowers. The very same flowers in the hospital wing bathroom.

She wondered absently who leaves them.

Letting her eyes sweep over the room, she found that there were no windows or doors of any sort in the ‘fresher. Looks like _that_ escape plan was a definite negative.

Could she really ditch General Hux like a date gone horribly wrong? Well, yes. Yes, she could- because this was horribly wrong. Why was she even here?

Aleta slipped out of her uniform as quickly as she could manage before the droid started fawning over her. It took one look at her, shook its head, and corralled her into the shower.

“I can do it my- ouch! Hey!”

She sniffed as the silver droid tugged a comb through her damp hair. Rushing through a shower was never something Aleta enjoyed, but the fact that the genocidal madman mostly responsible for destroying her homeworld was in the next room, she decided that spending less time in the shower was advisable. It left her too vulnerable.

Once her hair was dry to the droid’s liking, the helpful little robot helped to stuff her into the blue blue dress which was hanging on the back of the door. It was an old-fashioned off-the-shoulder gown with a deep neckline. It was actually creepy how well it fit. How had this dress gotten out here, anyway? Certainly, the outer rim was much too far for a dress shop to make a house call… unless he had it from before...

_Why would the general even have a woman’s dress, to begin with?_

Letting out a sigh assessing her thinning face in the mirror as the droid finished fastening a hook-and-eye in the back, they took a step back.

“You look beautiful, Miss,” they exclaimed in that cheerful way.

Aleta turned around to face the robot quickly, her eyebrows furrowed in puzzlement. “What is all of this about?”

“I wasn’t told the details,” the droid said apologetically. She imagined that if they were human, they would have shrugged.

Aleta closed her eyes and forced down the lump in her throat. She was acutely aware that the droid might report back to General Hux if it noticed anything off about her, so she straightened and put on a neutral expression once more.

“Thank you for your help D4-GO.”

“Of course, miss! Now, if you would follow me. The General awaits!”

And so, she did.

General Hux had taken off his cape and hat and was sitting at the table flipping through a few news articles on his holoscreen. When he saw her, he set it aside and stood. The surprise was evident in his eyes- though she was sure he’d seen her file before. Why was he so surprised? Maybe it was the dress.

To be fair, it was a pretty great dress- even if it made her look like somebody's trophy wife. Her parents would have been proud to see her in it had they been among the living still.

“Sorry for the wait, general! Here she is- tah-dah!”

“You look-” he paused, letting his gaze sweep over her as if he might find the word he was looking for on her skin. “Breathtaking. Won’t you sit with me?”

She offered him a smile and sat in the chair across from him, crossing her legs at her ankles. A moment of silence fell between them as they stared at each other. Aleta feigned ease while her mind was in loud, undulating discord and General Hux was leaning forward, his elbows on the table with his long fingers laced together as he looked on with interest.

“This is my little way of thanking you for restoring Kylo Ren to us,” he explained after a moment, flourishing his hand over the table.

Aleta nodded modestly before speaking, “though thanks are unnecessary as caring for ailing comrades is technically a part of my duties as a medical officer.”

“Just so,” he conceded. Raising a glass of wine, “to… the success of Master Snoke.”

Aleta kept her expression neutral even though she wanted to fling her own glass of red wine across the room. Handling her glass gingerly, she clinked it against his. _To the Resistance,_ she thought.

General Hux watched her over the rim of his glass- most likely to see if she hesitated. A spy would hesitate, unsure of whether or not it was poisoned.

Her father’s favorite phrase growing up was ‘you have nothing to fear if you have nothing to hide’, but she had everything to hide. So she pretended that she didn’t. Without giving pause, she took a sip. The heat from the oaky aged alcohol slid down her throat. It was earthier than her usual wine preference, but it wasn’t bitter.

She would soon find out if it was poisoned. A beat passed. Nothing.

“It’s a Malbec?” Asked Aleta conversationally, swirling the beverage around in the glass- waiting for her body to react to any sort of poison, still counting those precious seconds. _Nothing._

His brow quirked, “it is.”

“Excellent choice,” she said in her most charming voice, taking another sip when she really wanted to down the entire glass and get another. He smirked, inclining his head before drinking from his own glass.

“To be honest,” he said, leaning back in his chair watching her with a thoroughness that made her feel very self-conscious, “I had an ulterior motive in asking you here.”

Her brain was set immediately to red alert, though her expression changed only to something more coquettish, “and what motive would that be?” She drawled.

“After dinner,” he said simply with a disarming smile.

They ate and he asked her questions about her duties and if she enjoyed them. She made up some bantha spit about “returning the glory of the old Empire to the galaxy” which seemed to be the right thing to say. It seemed to please him, anyway. 

“The last time we spoke, you mentioned a little project you were working on in secret,” he said quietly. Aleta nearly froze with a spoon of fenti beans halfway to her mouth. She chomped down on the spoon and took her time chewing. “How goes progress?”

“As well as can be expected,” she answered, hoping the vague answer would do something to stop this line of questioning.

“And did you manage to rectify the side-effects?” General Hux inquired, unperturbed by her attempt to derail the conversation. _Side-effects? Had AX-4295 been working on making some sort of drug?_

“Not quite yet,” she lied, pulling her eyebrows together. ”I’ve tested it numerous times, but I’m not sure what’s wrong with it.”

He nodded understandingly, “it’s unfortunate that I have to ask this of you, but I have urgent use of the serum. This can’t wait.”

 _It was a serum?_ Aleta managed to nod, forcing a look of alarm, “but the side-effects are still-”

“We won’t have any use of the individual we’re questioning afterward, anyway. Don’t concern yourself with it this time.”

Aleta fought to keep equal parts confusion and disgust from flashing across her face, and dabbed her mouth with the cloth napkin. “Is my clearance high enough to inquire who you’ll be questioning?”

A smile slid across his mouth, “regrettably not. Not beforehand anyway.”

“Has something happened?” She tried again.

“All I can tell you is that I received a transmission from our scouting vessel a few hours ago, and it was made quite obvious that we have yet another traitor in our midst.”

The room suddenly turned very cold, “any word on their identity?”

“A few,” he conceded without telling her any real information. It felt like he was toying with her as if he knew. Swirling the wine in his glass around, he laced his fingers together watching her over the rim with dark unfathomable eyes. “But they’ll wish they’d never been born once we have them in custody.”

“Don’t tell me the scouts came away empty-handed,” she said in false disbelief.

His eyes flashed, but a cruel smile remained, “not entirely.”

Aleta nodded, managing as much of a smirk as she could stomach. It was so hard not to hate herself for this act, but she was a spy. This is why General Organa put her up to this task in the first place. More importantly, _if they didn’t come back empty-handed, what did they do to Rey and Luke? It wasn’t possible for two Jedis to be taken down by a battalion of Stormtroopers scouts without the help of a force user, was it?_

“Good,” she said, taking a long drink from the glass. The tension diffused as soon as the reappeared to serve the final course of beignets with fruit preserves for dessert. Aleta couldn’t believe it... beignets? All the way out here? 

The pastries were a light golden color sprinkled with powdered sugar; the fruit preserves which accompanied them were of all various types and colors and came in small serving dishes attached to a tiered metal contraption.

“You’ve outdone yourself this time, General,” she smiled after thanking the droid.

He chuckled earnestly, leaning forward with his elbows on the table. 

“Not at all,” he said with a genuine smile crinkled the corners of his eyes. “I know you enjoy them.”

If she didn’t know better, she could have easily mistaken him for a beguiled man on a date. Aleta blinked in surprise- turning a bit pink, _oh goddess. What was going on between AX-4295 and General Hux?_

Suddenly, she wasn’t so sure if she wanted to stay after dinner to hear the “real reason” why he asked her over. Before she could let the thought sink in, she took a beignet from the platter, as did he. She could tell he was watching her.

Whether or not it was to seek out evidence of deceit or because he had feelings for AX-4295, she no longer knew. Perhaps he, too, was playing along- or perhaps he had no idea at all.

_How dangerous it is not to know._

“How on Earth did you get these all the way out here?” Asked Aleta to satiate her own curiosity, scooping some dark red colored preserves out with a butter knife before spreading it on her beignet.

“Routine supply runs to Freda Centari,” he said with a shrug.

_Freda Centauri._

_Maybe she could trade her x-wing for a larger shuttle after tonight’s impossible heist. Hyperspeed was on the fritz in hers- and she’d need it to get back to base. It was still a three day’s journey._

_If she made it out alive._

“We make do,” General Hux went on with a shrug. “How are they?”

Aleta licked her lips and took a bite. It was like sinking her teeth into a sweet, fruity cloud. The sweet and tart flavors mingled on her tongue and she closed her eyes in pure and unadulterated bliss. _It might have been one of the best things she’d ever eaten in her whole life._ Not having sugar for a year and a half would do that. She could have cried.

Then smiling, strangely at ease, “they’re delicious.”

General Hux smiled again, “I’m glad to see my cooking abilities have improved in your eyes.”

_Did he bake for her? Good grief… AX-4295 must’ve been something else._

“You have,” she said gently, her heart panging- just the slightest amount for this man who might have been in love with her doppelganger, and who was still unaware that she was dead and that a spy had taken her identity to disrupt the First Order. That was a betrayal he would not take lightly.

For Aleta, it was even more of an encouragement not to get caught.

Suddenly, her holoscreen pinged, lighting up with a scheduling notification.

 

_Medical duty: Kylo Ren_

_15 Minutes_

 

She forced down a lump in her throat and raised her eyes to meet his. “Duty calls, I’m afraid.”

“Ah,” the General said as if he’d just remembered. “Apologies for keeping you.”

“Not at all,” she responded, rising to her feet- her legs had a strange gelatinous quality. “Thank you for tonight.”

“AX-4295?” He called as she turned to the fresher where she’d left her uniform.

Her heart was thundering in her ears, and her body was flushed with adrenaline. She turned, to find him taking off his hat as he approached her. “Yes?”  

He took her right hand in his and pressed a kiss to it, “I have wanted to do this for some time now.” He said, taking her waist in one hand and placing the other on the back of her neck. Her eyes widened in shock- her own set sparks flying in her blood. _Oh. No._ General Hux stroked her cheek with his thumb, “can I kiss you?”

She did _not_ want to kiss the man who’d committed the most destabilizing galactic atrocity in a thousand years, but If she flat out refused, she could compromise the entire operation. However, the way he looked at her, the way he looked at _AX-4295,_ made her feel that she owed him closure. She’d been the one to find her on the battlefield after all.

Before she could put any more thought into it, she nodded.

He kissed her softly on the lips and her eyes fluttered closed, threading her fingers through his hair. For a moment, for the smallest moment, she pretended that he was Kylo Ren.


	7. Day Six, Part III

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It has been FOREVER since I updated. I apologize, guys. I hope you enjoy this Christmas update! I'd like to finish this story up next month. Stay tuned!
> 
> Also, thank you all for your kind words and continued support- it means more than you know. Thank you for encouraging me to continue with this story despite my ridiculous schedule. 
> 
> In addition, I wanted to let you all know that I am hoping to get an MFA in creative writing next fall! I'm super excited about it, so I'll be in touch about that, too!
> 
> I hope you all had a lovely holiday! xoxo
> 
> (If you want to get in touch with me easily, I'm on tumblr as starrytreks.tumblr.com - you can shoot me a message there anytime!)

Her lips tingled from the kiss as she struggled to get back into her uniform while the service droid busied itself hanging the silk gown back on its hanger. Her thoughts came to her jumbled as she worked through her plan again while simultaneously trying to keep track of the time that had passed was even more of a hassle.

 _Forty-five minutes? Thirty?_ She would have to move quickly.

There was a potent muscle steroid in the first aid kit that would make her a bit stronger if she had any hope of hauling Kylo Ren's gigantic frame over to the loading dock.

Aleta’s holopad held her prisoner as she retrieved her first aid kit from her quarters and injected herself with the steroid-filled syringe in the right and left upper arm and on her thighs.

In the first aid kit were the vials of sedative she’d taken from med bay. It would need to be done quickly, so she prepped the needles beforehand. There was enough sedative to either knock out a wild bantha or to put someone with Kylo Ren's height, weight, and Force ability out for the count for a solid four hours.

After a few calming breaths, Aleta rushed off to Kylo Ren’s quarters.

 _Getting close enough to inject him with four syringes at once should be a breeze_ ,' she thought grimly.

Her legs felt stronger from the injection already, although her knees were shaking; it was probably due to the nerves.

It occurred to her that he might have enough time to kill her before he blacked out, but she couldn't allow herself to think like that. General Organa was counting on her to bring her son home. The General needed her. 

The sound of voices coming from Kylo Ren's room made her freeze mid-knock. One voice belonged to General Organa's son and the other belonged to a woman. Before she could stop herself, Aleta leaned in a bit closer to hear them.

"Can't you put on a cowl or something?" The woman asked, sounding ruffled. _It was Rey._

How was she here? Had Aleta missed something? Ahch-To was entire  _star systems_  away. There was no possibility that Rey could be on Mulosko, let alone in Kylo Ren's quarters... and yet...

"I didn't hate my father," Kylo Ren said instead of answering her question.

"Why did you run away?"

"Luke didn't tell you?"

"Yes, he-"

"He didn't tell you the truth."

There came a brief pause before Rey spoke again sounding alarmed, "why would he try to kill you?"

"Why don't you ask him?"

After that exchange, the room fell silent.

Pursing her lips, Aleta closed her eyes and waited for a few beats before knocking. The doors opened and Ben Solo was standing in the middle of his room topless and staring into space. There was a freshly purpling bruise on his back.

"Are you... okay?" She asked carefully, taking off her helmet and closing the door behind her.

"Yes," he said, turning back around. He looked shaken and vulnerable- she'd never seen him like that before.

"Snoke?" She inquired, guiding him to sit down at the foot of his bed with her hand on his arm.

"It doesn't matter."

"It matters to me," she whispered, touching his cheek. "I brought some painkillers if you want them."

"I don't," he sighed.

"Alright."

She got to her knees and opened the first aid kit, rummaging through it for the bandage remover and antiseptic spray. After a beat of silence, Ben spoke, "AX-4295?"

"Sir?"

"How long were you waiting outside the door?"

She fought back the urge to cringe, "not long."

"How much did you hear?" He inquired.

"Murmurs, nothing more."

Ben took her chin in his hand and forced her to look at him, his eyes dark with warning. "You're lying."

"You were talking to someone and I didn't want to intrude," she said breaking his hold on her chin, spraying the antiseptic to clean the scarred skin of the charcoal black residue the bandage left behind. It was nothing more than a pathetic attempt to prolong the inevitable.

"You knew it was Rey," he whispered. Aleta looked up at him wide-eyed, hoping for an opportunity to distract him as he read her expression, his confusion clearing. "How-"

It was now or never.

Double-fisting the syringes, Aleta stabbed him in the chest with them, her jaw clenched. She'd somehow managed to inject him halfway before Ben let out a roar of anger and pain as he threw her across the room with the Force. She'd been braced for this, but it didn't make the experience of hitting a wall any less jarring.

If she'd been wearing the dress she'd had on before, he would have broken her spine for sure. Stars danced in Aleta's eyes as she came to.

"I knew it!" He seethed ferally, yanking the needles out of his chest. Aleta rolled onto her feet and assumed a fighting stance; not that it would do her much good against the hulking force-user. "I trusted you," he shouted, ripping her off of her feet, violently throwing her against the wall again.

She cried out, but when her head made contact with the wall, the scream died in her mouth. Whiplash was a bitch and she was feeling perfectly kaleidoscopic. Points of light flashed in her eyes as she struggled against the weight that held her there.

"I trusted you! I thought-" he staggered in his approach and groaned, falling onto his hands and knees. The grip holding her to the wall waned and she collapsed to her knees, breathing hard.

She lunged for the bed dizzily, gathered the syringes, and injected the rest of them near the bruise on his back. A hiss left his mouth but he didn't attack her this time.

"Ben," she whispered, her eyes going blurry, "I'm so sorry." Ben slumped to the floor and Aleta fell to her knees, pushing him onto his back to press a hand to his forehead- he didn't feel clammy yet; that was good.

She hooked her arms under his arms and hauled him up. It was more difficult than she thought, even 'with' the steroids in her system. They were certainly working their magic, or else she wouldn't have been able to lift him at all.

"You- aren't going to get away with this," he muttered, his voice thick.

"I know," Aleta whispered.

He whispered something incoherent before his body went slack. When she pulled Ben out of his quarters, she spotted a Stormtrooper patrolling down the corridor, unaware of their presence. Aleta cringed and began hauling him in the opposite direction as quickly and quietly as she could. A minute passed before she saw the Stormtrooper turn to take in the scene of Aleta, an apparently helmet-less Stormtrooper, and Kylo Ren, an object of terror in the First Order, who was unconscious in her arms.

Cursing, Aleta hauled ass.

"Halt!" The Stormtrooper cried before firing.

Fortunately, none of the shots landed true and she was able to make it to one of the utility elevators the First Order had installed inside the monastery when they first came to Mulosko.

This elevator went directly to the hangar where they kept all of their TIE fighters. Ben's weight was starting to wear on her, but it wouldn't be much longer now.

As she fumbled for her blaster with one hand, Ben started crushing her against the back of the elevator until she grabbed him with both hands again.

Moments like those made her wish she had another set of hands.

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Aleta turned them both around, her back to the door of the elevator and waited.

_Ding!_

The hangar was empty. Fortunately, everyone was elsewhere in the compound. Perhaps it wasn't so bad that it was storming like the world was ending after all.

She pulled the unconscious man fifty yards with gritted teeth and set him down near the keypad of the hangar door for a moment to type her personal code.

 _Inclement weather restriction,_  the access panel read. _Access override?_

The moment she pressed _yes_ , all hell broke loose.

Alarms went off all over the compound as the door slowly opened, she ducked under it the moment that there was enough room for them and fought against sheets of rain and wind to reach the launch pad. At that moment, QB-4 was making a reckless landing attempt.

"Hey Queuebie, good timing!" She shouted over the howling wind as the droid popped open the cockpit.

Hoisting Kylo Ren into that cockpit was the hardest thing She'd ever done. She threw her tired arms over the edge and pulled herself in as well. The fighter was far too small to fit them both. It was a one-seater, after all.

She always knew how this mission had to end even though she fooled herself into thinking that she would be able to go back, too.

Only one of them would be leaving this godforsaken place and it had to be Ben.

She quickly righted him in the seat and fumbled with the harness. After she keyed in the coordinates of Freda Centauri, Aleta turned back to Ben, smoothed the wet hair out of his face, and pressed a kiss to his forehead. Tears welled in her eyes and dripped down her cheeks.

"I'm so sorry it had to be this way," Aleta whispered. "For what it's worth, I do love you."

Taking a deep breath, the woman jumped out of the x-wing and onto the tarmac.

Queuebie beeped at her frantically, the meaning was clear; _what are you doing?_

"You'll be solo on this mission, buddy," she whispered, placing her hand on the droid's domed head. "Don't let Kylo Ren use the weapons unless it's on a First Order vessel. Send the General the coordinates I programmed so that she can meet you. When you see her, tell her: 'may the Force be with you, now and always- my general, my queen.'"

The droid wailed as shouts from inside the hangar rose, "they're on the launch pad, hurry!"

"Go!" Aleta cried. QB-4 sealed the cockpit and initialized the thrusters just as the Stormtroopers clamored out onto the launchpad and began firing at the x-wing. Aleta hit the deck, covering her head with the back of her hands to avoid being hit by the blaster rounds when the jet took off. Within seconds, the x-wing had disappeared behind three monstrous streaks of lightning.

Rough hands hauled her up by her arms and dragged her back into the hangar. She didn't have the energy or the will to fight back. All she knew was that she hadn't failed her mission. Not yet anyway. 

"Well, well, well," said a familiar voice. "It looks like we found our mole."

It was General Hux and he looked very, utterly _amused_.


	8. Day Six, Part IV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter contains physical torture violence and a lot of cursing- I'm elevating this fic to an M rating.

Nausea curdled the contents of her stomach when they took her blaster and put her in cuffs and a blindfold. She wondered how much General Hux knew. Perhaps he'd known her identity the entire time which made her even sicker. Aleta's arms ached and felt stretched- a bit like taffy when the steroid began to wear off.

Nevertheless, she held her head like an Empress. If she was going to die, she would have her pride.

The further they walked, the colder it became. While the echoing of their steps suggested that they were in a large space, they were climbing down a spiraling staircase which meant that they were descending into an underground cavern.

She wondered if they were taking her to Snoke; she had kidnapped his apprentice, after all.

They walked for about thirty minutes, give or take. It had been the longest thirty minutes of her life.

When the blindfold was removed, her eyes darted around the cold metal holding cell. It looked a little like medbay, minus all of its warmth and there didn't appear to be a doorway of any kind in this room. That was impossible, though. They had to have entered this room from _somewhere_.

A chair with metal restraints sat at the room’s center and Dr. Levistow was rummaging in the cabinets for a glass vial which contained a milky white substance. In her other latex covered hand was a syringe, which made her extremely uneasy.

“I’ll let you handle things, for now, Dr. Levistow,” the General said from behind Aleta which nearly made her jump. 

“AX-4295!” Dr. Levistow exclaimed, obviously quite surprised. “Why are you here?”

Aleta clenched her jaw and shook her head. All concern and gentleness evaporated from the doctor's face, and she exchanged looks with General Hux who nodded.

"You may leave," he ordered the Troopers on either side of Aleta. Both snapped to attention, relinquishing their holds on her shoulders, and marched out.

“She'll need to take off the armor for this," Dr. Levistow said quietly. Aleta eyed the syringe in the doctor's hand, whatever it was, it was bad news banthas.

"Don't you recognize your own work, AX-4295?" General Hux mocked, taking off her armor.

 _Of course,_  this was the serum they'd talked about over dinner... and she still had no idea what it did.

Aleta closed her eyes and forced down the lump in her throat. Hux steered her to the metal table once he'd finished taking off her armor, "I'm going to uncuff you." General Hux said quietly, patting the blaster on his hip with his hand, "this can be as civil or as barbaric as you want to make it. The choice is yours."

Aleta said nothing.

What could she do? She was weak, tired, and knew that even if she could avoid getting shot at close range by General Genocide, and somehow get out of this room and find her way out of the cavern, that two-hundred and some odd Stormtroopers still stood between her and the TIE fighter hangar. Besides, she didn't even know where she was or how to get out.

General Hux uncuffed her and helped her into the stirrups of the chair, he seemed surprised by her compliance but he misunderstood her exhaustion for willingness.

She wasn't willing in the least; she was just too ineffectual at the moment to kick his sorry ass.

Dr. Levistow assisted in strapping her down and, as she did, she explained what Aleta was doing there, “I am going to inject you with a serum which inhibits neurons in the brain that fire misinformation,” she said, rolling up Aleta's left sleeve with a hardened expression, "but you should already know that, AX-4295."

_It was a truth serum. Of course, it was._

Just like that, things had gone from bad to worse.

Dr. Levistow stuck the needle into the large vein in the crease of her elbow and Aleta looked away, squeezing her eyes shut. She was only glad she didn’t know Rey and Luke's locations at that particular moment, however, she did know where the Resistance’s base was... unless they'd decided to pack up camp. Regardless, the information she had was dangerous enough. 

Seconds after the syringe was pulled out of the crease of her elbow, it felt as if she’d been submerged. Tremors shook her and she felt a white-hot searing pain in the back of her head. A gasp and a strangled scream tore free from her mouth as the burning flared, lighting her whole brain aflame before it dimmed and charred like cinders in a fireplace.

These side-effects were shit.

“The tremors will subside soon enough, General,” the doctor said stepping back. General Hux approached her. Her tremors had turned to shivering, and Aleta decided that she would remain as silent as she could. “She should answer any and all of your questions truthfully, now.”

“Excellent, thank you, doctor. Now, I need to ask you to step out.”

“Of course,” Doctor Levistow said, casting one last glance at Aleta before leaving her alone with the monster who’d killed her parents and friends, destroyed her homeworld with a doomsday machine that absorbed stars, and destabilized the Republic. She tried to watch the doctor as she left, but the woman seemed to walk away and vanish from sight. No door needed. 

 _What?_  

“I’m going to start with a control question,” he said. “Is your name AX-4295?”

“Here, it is,” answered Aleta, bringing her focus back to General Hux. 

_Damn, all she could give were pathetic half-answers._

General Hux’s face darkened, “what is your name when you aren't here?”

She didn’t speak.

“Perhaps you don’t quite understand how this works,” he said conversationally, turning his back on her, going to retrieve something from the cabinets. “I mentioned before that we could make this as civilized or as barbaric as you want,” he said, taking off his black gloves and putting on a pair latex ones with his back to her. “It seems like you desire to be difficult, so I’ll be taking a few precautions against that.”

He took something metal from the drawer and approached her with a carving knife that looked about as horrible as a knife could look in his gloved hands.

This knife, she'd learned, was used for autopsies... on cadavers.

A shiver ran down her spine.

“Now,” he said, angling the blade at her left eye, holding her face in place, his eyes boring holes into her. "What is your real name?"

A lump stuck firmly in her throat and she took a ragged breath in.

“Answer the question,” he commanded.

"Aleta… Caldoran,” she croaked. It was like pulling teeth to fight the serum.

The General released her face and took a holoprojector from his pocket and keyed in her name, cross-referencing it with AX-4295’s origins. His eyes scanned the information, and he looked up at her, seeming as if he finally understood.

“AX-4295 was your identical twin. Her name had been Amara before we enlisted her,” he said, eyeing her suspiciously. Her heart clenched; she hadn’t even known she’d had a sister. The First Order must have taken her before she could remember. "However, your parents must have hidden you when we came to collect you both; they told us one of you had died in childbirth.” The General said, stroking her cheek with the blade almost affectionately. The contact made her shudder, “it seems that lying is a family trait.”

Anger boiled in her gut, but she would get skewered if she didn’t hold her tongue.

"Did you... love my sister?"

The General paused, pressing the flat of the blade into her cheek. "Ah, you _must_ be wondering about dinner," he mused. "It was a fabrication to see how far you were willing to go to stack up to the expectations you believed I had for AX-4295. When you kissed me, I realized that you'd do anything to keep your cover."

Aleta gritted her teeth. _Bastard._ "If you suspected me, why didn't you stop me?" 

"Because the Supreme Leader decided to exploit the Resistance's attempt to undermine him. Letting you have your way was simply the easiest way to bring his plan to fruition." 

"And what plan is that exactly?" She asked, offering a silent prayer to the old and new gods that she hadn’t sent Leia into a trap.

General Hux chuckled, "I'm afraid I can't tell you that, but I really must thank you for getting rid of that royal headache of mine. Kylo Ren's emotional outbursts make my job so much more... _difficult_." Aleta pursed her lips and rolled her eyes- knowing exactly what his  _job_ entailed. "Now, back to business; what is the location of Rey and Luke Skywalker?" 

"Currently? Not sure," she answered. Hux's mouth twitched.

"Which  _planet?"_  He demanded. 

Aleta clenched her jaw. 

"Very well," he shrugged lazily. "I'm getting information every ten minutes from Captain Phasma, so it hardly matters. We'll have Luke Skywalker and the scavenger girl very soon. Moving on- are you aware of the Resistance's current location?" 

"I know where they've been, but not where they are _now_. It's been a few days." 

"You tricky little minx. Your half-truths aren't going to save you."

"They're doing a pretty good job so far, I'd say." 

He rolled his eyes in annoyance and grabbed her chin in his hand. Aleta jerked back to get away from him to no avail.

“Where did you send Kylo Ren?” He demanded, angling the blade towards her face with the more unfriendly side. She closed her eyes and didn’t answer- even though the close proximity was enough to make her stomach churn. General Hux slid the blade down her cheek at an angle which didn't pierce the skin and held it to her throat. “You’d better tell me if you value your life.”

She didn’t speak.

“I could make assumptions if you’re not going to talk.” General Hux shrugged. “I’m thinking that you knew better than to send that little x-wing of yours directly to Resistance HQ. You're clever, but too much so for your own good. Now, where did you send him?”

Aleta stared at him mutely and stone-faced.

"WHERE IS HE?"

Hux let out an angry huff after a few beats of silence and stabbed her in the stomach with the knife narrowly missing her liver. A feral roar of pain tore out of her throat, tears sprang to her eyes.

“I’m not telling you anything!” Aleta screamed through waves of pain. General Hux wrenched her face up again so that she was forced to meet his eyes.

“Yes- you will,” he growled, stabbing her again in the same place and twisted the knife. Another scream and a sob from her seemed to satisfy him, he clutched the weapon tightly. “Give me his coordinates. Immediately.”

“Get fucked, Hux.” She seethed, he went red with anger and drew out the knife, only to stab her again.

The pain knocked the air right out of her. Aleta screamed as he pushed his shoulder into her chest. Hot tears streaked down her face, and her breathing turned erratic as cold filled her body.

Blood was starting to drip onto the floor. _So much... blood._  
All she could sense was the pain; nothing else existed.

“Tell me the coordinates."

"I'd rather die," Aleta whispered through gritted teeth.

"Not yet," he murmured. "I will kill you, my dear, but I won't do it now. Though I have to say, I’m impressed. We could use some of your brand of loyalty around here.” He turned one of her wrists so that the inside was facing up. He drew the knife out of her abdomen and began to dig it into her flesh just above her wrist. “Answer. Me.” With every word, he added another cut, and then another.

He was cutting her to shreds. 

 _Stop it! Please, make it stop,_ she pleaded with herself. _Give him something- anything!_

“I refuse to tell you where he is,” she said through gritted teeth, trying to bottle her rage. "But I did have an ulterior motive in coming here."

“Oh?" He asked going in for another cut, trying to sound interested. "And what would that be?"

“I’m going to kill you if it’s the last thing I do!” She shrieked.

This had been the last straw for General Hux because the last thing Aleta remembered was his blood-covered latex fist connecting with her skull before everything faded out.


	9. An Announcement

Hello all!

I have some unfortunate news.

I started this fic about a year and a half ago, and it was... written when I was in a very different mindset. Because of this, _Unthinkable_ is no longer a story I want to write. Though it breaks my heart, I think it's for the best.

Regardless, I have so appreciated the support and kindness I have been shown by those of you who have left comments and kudos, and also to even the tacit readers that stumbled upon this story (perhaps by accident- but I hope it was a happy one).

From the bottom of my heart, I thank each and every one of you. I am so sorry for any disappointment you might feel, but I had to do what is best for me.

Thank you all once more, and I hope to have something new for you very soon.

Kind regards,

StarryTreks


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